Simon Tech Science Fair

The freedom to design, implement, and showcase science labs can be a daunting task for high school sophomores. We end each year in my class with a month of self-paced group projects aimed at constructing an experiment that will test hypothesis around a subject of students' choice. Anything from crime scene investigation, to the chemistry of ice cream preparation, to the reactions involved in instant hand warmers is fair game during this unit. Students collect data that answers their hypothesis and create a website to display their findings. Having a publicly visible product makes sharing the results of student findings easy, and helps them contribute to the scientific community at large. At the same time, it helps hold them accountable to a higher quality of work, knowing anyone, anywhere, can see the incredible things they've created.

This is the science fair rubric that students made last year based on the lab report issues that emerged across all submitted work. When students make the rubric themselves, they are much more inclined to follow along with it!

This google slides presentation displays the different categories that students can select from to create their guiding question. Each of the different lab options comes with an investigation background reading and a series of guiding notes.

This is the science fair rubric that students made last year based on the lab report issues that emerged across all submitted work. When students make the rubric themselves, they are much more inclined to follow along with it!

This google slides presentation displays the different categories that students can select from to create their guiding question. Each of the different lab options comes with an investigation background reading and a series of guiding notes.

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Students want to feel that the work they are doing is meaningful, and in some way connected to their lives. I motivate my students to invest in my class by using Social Issue Openings to tie the day’s content to current events, social justice issues, or health related chemistry. For example, during our unit on Gas Laws, we talk about how the same principles that help bread rise and make popcorn pop contribute to air pollution and global warming. I’ve found that focusing on issues in science regarding race, class, and gender – subjects my students care deeply about – adds meaning to the work, and frames learning and achieving as part of a larger movement. This year, the conversation has largely revolved around increasing female representation in the STEM career fields, and I hope to continue using real-world examples to drive investment in my class.

10 years ago, great teachers would hastily grade free-response questions overnight in an effort to provide feedback to students in a timely manner. However, the days of using data as taillights are behind us. Tools like Educanon, Formative, and Google Docs make it easy to collect actionable data and make informed, instantaneous decisions around dynamic grouping, individual competencies, and even customized learning paths. For example, Formative allows me to upload a document, designate areas for student input (multiple choice, free response, and even drawing), and then assign the activity to students. As students fill in the doc at their own pace, the teacher interface is updated in real-time so that I know which students need my help and when. I can pair struggling students with those who are just figuring it out, gather students for small group instruction, or re-teach concepts when there is a trend of misconceptions. Beyond that, catching student miscues as they happen makes it easier for me to help students polish unfinished work, fill in gaps in knowledge before summative assessments, and learn how to correct their own mistakes.

I’ve been interested in the power of checklists ever since I read Atul Gawande’s Checklist Manifesto. His book highlights how simple checklists have revolutionized industries like architecture, aviation, and surgery. When students are regulating their own work pace, I offer them structure in the form of Mastery Checklists that provide guidance around individualized learning paths. Students start each day by looking at data from previous assessments, and adjusting action plans with learning goals for the day. Then they work through their checklists and update their Trello boards with finished work samples. By pairing Mastery Checklists with a visual organization tool like Trello, it’s easy for me to keep my finger on the pulse of each student’s activity, and guide them in the right direction.